We already know that big changes can make a big impact, but we totally underestimate the tiny tweaks that can make your everyday smoother. On this podcast episode, we’re sharing more tweaks that give your today and your tomorrows a boost.
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Check In – Give your Tomorrow a Boost
In Episode 51, I shared my newfound perspective on the task of picking up my kids after school. I’m working on reframing my thinking from, “What a chore to go pick up my kids from 3 different schools, ugh,” into “I get to pick up my kids from school each day!”
However, it can be challenging to remain upbeat and positive when your kids are fighting the whole way home, am I right?!
This is real life of course, and as much as we love tips and tricks to make things go smoothly, we know life (and other people) are unpredictable!
One book that has really helped my parenting perspective is, Parenting, by Paul David Tripp. It gives a Biblical perspective on the struggles of parenting. He has some great insight and I wish I would’ve read it when I first became a parent!
Since things don’t always go smoothly, it is nice to have an array of shortcuts to choose from to life’s little hiccups get in the way.
Lydia, a listener, emailed us her small but mighty task which make dinner time easier and more approachable. Since she dislikes chopping onions for dinner, but still finds them tasty, she pre-batches all of the onion chopping ahead of time. Here are her steps:
- Purchased a large bag of yellow onions with my weekly groceries.
- One by one, chopped each onion. (Some I sliced, some I diced)
- Put each chopped or sliced onion into a sandwich baggie.
- Labeled each bag with “1 sliced yellow onion” or “1 diced onion” plus the date.
- Flattened and rolled each bag (to squeeze the air out).
- Placed each flattened bag upright in a shallow bin (like file folders) so I can easily access the bags in the freezer.
Thanks for sharing your tip Lydia! As you can see, it doesn’t have to be a whole big meal prep session. Just one small thing can make a big difference.
What’s one small thing you do to prep for your future self? You can share with us below in the comments or on social media. Use the hashtags #AtoBpodcast.
Give Today a Boost
We are continuing our theme from last episode, Episode 51, to simplify life by planning ahead for our future self. We are thinking about small ways we can simplify without doing a whole, big house decluttering session.
None of these tips are earth shattering however, a little can go a long way! When the day-to-day tasks are flowing smoothly, it’s easier to have the energy to get other parts of your home organized.
Use what you have
We are so conditioned (me included!), to think we need to run out and buy something we don’t have. But we are here to question that triggered response!
Next time you need something or you run out of something ask yourself, “Is there anything I already have that I can use instead or can I even do without?” For example:
- Wrap a gift with yarn instead of ribbon.
- Plan a meal with food that has been hanging out in the back of the pantry for way too long.
- Get creative with school projects and use what you have at home first before running to the craft store.
- When you run out of a makeup or toiletry item, take stock of what your already have before replacing it (guilty as charged!). You might even find some hidden treasures you forgot about.
- Bonus: Can you borrow it from a friend? Like a platter for a party, an electric sander for a big project, or a camping stove for a trip. Having a close friend you can freely trade back and forth with saves space AND money.
Challenge yourself to pause, check your own stash, before running out to buy something new. I’ll be doing the same with my lip gloss collection!
Pay attention to the little annoyances – they usually have simple fixes
When we come across little annoyances throughout our day, they bug us, and then we move on. We are busy and don’t have time to focus on small hassles.
This is a good trait to have and one I’m working one with my kids. However, there are times to stop and pay attention to a little annoyance, if only just for a minute, and ask, “Is there a simple solution to this?”
Here are a few questions to ask yourself, which might lead you to a quick fix:
- Has the task been over-complicated with too many steps?
This can be one of the simplest solutions, just remove the extra steps. For me, all my beach towels were put away only to get them back out and put them in a bag. Now I skip that 1st step and just put all the beach towels in the bag to begin with. Why didn’t I think of that sooner!
- What simple task do you avoid?
If you are avoiding a simple task, most likely it has become a hassle for one reason or another. Can you determine the root cause?
Do you procrastinate putting laundry away? Are the drawers or cabinets too stuffed? If so, schedule a quick clean-out session (preferably on laundry day).
- Does it take too much effort?
This can be as simple as using hooks so towels and jackets are easier to hang up. Using an open bin for shoes instead of lining up shoes on a shoe rack.
Try doing one small piece at a time, like finding your socks for the morning. Or try doing a task all at once, like picking out all your clothes for the week ahead of time.
What is the ultimate cause of the little annoyance? Our challenge is to choose one small annoyance and spend a minute to see if it has a quick fix. Just choose one. You don’t have to fix everything now!
Look for ways to Automate
In Episode 36 Five Apps to Organize your Finances, we talked about automation as it pertains to our finances but let’s talk about other areas automation might be useful.
Automate your Podcast Feed
I was spending so much unnecessary time looking through my podcast feed trying to decide what to listen too. Then I would start something only to go back and look for something else.
I finally went into the settings in my podcasting app (I use PocketCast) and selected “auto download” and “auto add” to automatically add episodes to my playlist.
Now, I’m not wasting my time scrolling through podcast episode choices. I listen to my playlist and just skip ones that I don’t want to hear. But I do find myself listening to some episode I probably wouldn’t have click on in the past but I do find interesting.
You can also set up specific podcasts to start so many minutes or seconds in. This is great for those podcasts with super long intros!
Automate Shopping
I already sang the praise of automating your shopping as much as possible in our last episode so I won’t go on and on about it here, but we can’t talk about automation without mentioning it.
For consumables I buy often, I use Target’s Subscriptions service. Amazon also has Subscribe and Save. With both services, you receive an email ahead of time where you can edit your order or skip the delivery and you can cancel anytime.
It did take a little bit of tweaking to get the timing of the shipment right. However, in case I ever mess up an order, Target has free returns so there is nothing to lose!
Turn off Automation
Yes, not all automation makes our life easier. Ehem, I’m looking at you Facebook. If you haven’t done so yet, turn off all the notifications on your phone. I know we hear this tip anytime productive is mentioned and there is a reason for that!
Try turning off all your notification for one week and see how it goes. If you don’t like it, you can always turn them back on!
Let’s Connect!
We hope you’ve found one thing you’d like to give a try in your own life. Keep us updated and let us know if the tiny tweak has made a big difference.
A to B podcast is taking a break for the month of November but we will be back in December with new episodes. Until then you can check out some of our favorite and most popular episodes.
Ep 30 Taking the Hectic out of the Holidays
Ep 26 Interview with Peter Walsh
Ep 35 Clear your Paper Pile in 5 Steps? There’s a free download for this one!!
Ep 40 Three Life Hacks You’ll be Happy You Tried
Also during our break let us know if you have any topics you’d like to see covered on A to B podcast or any podcast guest you’d like to have us feature on the podcast.
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We even have a voicemail line (858) 480-7722! Or send us an email Hello @ AtoBpodcast.com.
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